Choking in Chiang Rai

By Andrew:
I've encountered some dangers in my travels. But, to be fair, they were usually due to situations of my own making. In Chiang Rai we encountered a situation that we never expected.
In previous entries we've commented on the smoke haze in the air, but in Chiang Rai it went to a whole new level. On your way into town the bus drives past the famous white temple. Typically this makes for glorious photos, with the ornate white structure contrasting against the crisp blue sky. When we went past the temple, however, it was almost blurring into the grey air.
Our bus arrived at the Chiang Rai terminal at about 1:30, and thankfully it was a quick walk to our nearby accommodation. Our plan was to visit the white temple while we were in town, and we were hoping the smog would clear later in the day, as it had each day back in Chiang Mai. But as we waited the air quality deteriorated further. I've never had the air that I breathe described as "hazardous" before, but that's exactly how the Air Quality Index was classifying it. Apparently prolonged exposure to air with more than 50ug/m3 can lead to premature death, and the value in Chiang Rai was currently 420! It was more than twice as bad as anywhere in China! By comparison, it was only 3 at home in downtown Sydney. Yep...3! For those who are curious how your town compares, you can check it out here:
https://waqi.info/

From Chiang Rai we caught a local "chicken" bus to take us to the Laos border. As we passed villages and rice fields our hearts sank. Partly for the locals having to endure these conditions, and partly with apprehension for the remainder of our trip. The vistas that would typically be representative of this part of Thailand had been turned into hazy hellscapes, with toxic soup for air. We were heading towards one of our trip highlights, and desperately hoping that the air was clearer over the border in northern Laos.Read more